Stephen Pampell🦬

I never discuss anything except politics and religion. There is nothing else to discuss. - G.K. Chesterton

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

“Outside of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, I know of no other hope for mankind.” - German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer

[Cranky Federalist @CrankyFed]

Your pub's flag isn't on the moon

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@HansFiene Prime opportunity to introduce her to Loony Tunes.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@HansFiene Are the Colts playing again?

[Fyodor Dostoevsky Collection 🪓 @Dostoevskyquot]

The Brothers Karamazov be like:

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@HansFiene Swap 5 and 8.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

Mine was different.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@wayofftheres @MrLeadslinger This. The Gen3 is the best grip Glock ever designed for comfort and shooting, but the carry profile of the Gen6 is 🤌.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

lol, it's 3.29 in College Station.

Y'all didn't have to import ALL of California, including their insane economy.

[Owen Shroyer @OwenShroyer1776]

Gas prices today in Austin, Texas.

Also, $50 limit on purchase.

First time I've not been able to fill my tank in the United States Of America.

[Douglas A. Boneparth @dougboneparth]

Last minute Father’s Day gift ideas for under $400K:

1. Porsche 911 GT3 RS

[Dr Jordan B. Cooper @DrJordanBCooper]

Look, I don't care what happens in the LCMS election because it is not my church, but I *do* care about the slander I am suddenly seeing all over the place about my friend Joel Biermann. Accusations of him abandoning the law-gospel distinction, wanting to compromise with the Reformed, and numerous other things are showing up again from over a decade ago. These are the same accusations that were leveled against me at the time (and from many of the same people).

Biermann fought against the reductionistic approach to law and gospel, which dominated the latter half of the twentieth century, before almost anyone. He was promoting virtue ethics at a time when the discipline was nearly entirely abandoned among Lutherans (Meilaender being almost the only exception).

When I entered the Lutheran world from outside, many were skeptical simply because I was not one of them. The mere fact that I had not always been Lutheran disqualified me from having anything to say about Lutheran theology. You know who didn't care about that at all? Joel Biermann. Because his concern has never been German culture or church politics, but has always been answering the question, "What is God's truth?"

At one time, I was essentially blackballed from a lot of Lutheran spaces for speaking against certain ideas that were deemed untouchable at the time (completely unknowingly, as I was a twenty-something who was totally clueless about inter-Lutheran politics). I had a book review editor of a Lutheran journal consistently block any positive reviews of my books for publication, and had multiple pastors and professors call churches to tell them to disinvite me when I was given an opportunity to speak at conferences. I was told that if I tried to publish anything with CPH, one of the members of the CDCR would make sure that nothing I wrote would pass doctrinal review.

But Biermann did not care about any of this. In fact, when I was something of a pariah to many in the LCMS, he wrote the foreword to my book on the topic that caused this (Hands of Faith). This is because he always cared about what is true, rather than what is popular or what is politically expedient.

The tide has turned on sanctification issues since then; arguing against law-gospel reductionism and encouraging virtue formation are no longer viewed as some radical fringe ideas (and they shouldn't be, since they have been a core element of the Lutheran tradition since its inception). Much of that is due to Biermann's work.

Do I agree with him about everything? Of course not. He's not as classical as I am philosophically, and he's more open on liturgical issues than I am. That doesn't make me any less grateful for him.

Biermann is a man of conviction who is willing to take positions that are unpopular if he believes them to derive from Scripture and align with our Confessions. There are too few men who are willing to do the same.

I don't care who you vote for. Give your reasons for why you want everyone to vote for the other candidate, but don't misrepresent a faithful man when doing so.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@BenStoeger187 Wait until you get old and that focal plane shift takes you seconds rather than milliseconds. My eyes suck. Finding my front sight post and then shifting my focal plane back to the target takes far too long.

RDS fixes this immediately.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@Pixieprogrammer I made my mom a grandmother at 39. I'm sure she had a similar moment. lol

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@Pixieprogrammer Ouch.

[Seth Dillon @SethDillon]

"Perpetrators from Pakistani Muslim and other Muslim backgrounds operated under an honour- and shame-based clan code that treated non-Muslim girls, especially white working class girls, as property available for sexual use. This pattern was reinforced by eight theological and legal aspects of Islam."

[Dr Jordan B. Cooper @DrJordanBCooper]

I am sorry to tell you, but congregational polity is central to the identity of the LCMS, and that is not something that will suddenly change by a vote. I urge you to read J.L. Neve's book A Brief History of the Lutheran Church in America to understand the underlying principles of various Lutheran synods.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@HansFiene It's the projection generation.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@WeaponOutfitter Oh but you do.

[Stephen Pampell🦬 @StephenPampell]

@Pixieprogrammer I fix this problem by using a doctor I go to church with. He actually cares.

[Matt Popovits @PopovitsMatt]

To my LCMS friends,

It’s time for the second round of voting in our LCMS presidential election. And that first round spoke volumes.

For the first time in his 16-year run, our incumbent was not reelected on the first ballot. And some 56% of electors voted for someone other than the sitting president.

To me, this means our church body has signaled a desire for change.

President Harrison himself has said that, should he be reelected, this would be his final triennium in office. But I believe his current term must be his last.

Respectfully, what has not been accomplished in sixteen years is not suddenly going to be accomplished in three more. It’s time to turn the page.

Under the current administration, we’ve seen a precipitous decline in membership. We’ve watched beloved Concordias disappear. We’ve become mired in needless, litigious infighting. We’ve allowed access to pastoral formation to be unnecessarily restricted, not for the good of congregations, but for the preservation of institutional control, all while a clergy shortage grows more severe.

When it comes to reversing these trends, the vision we’ve been offered is—and I truly seek to summarize what I’ve heard respectfully—to “mind the store and make more babies.” Keep doing church faithfully and encourage people to have large families.

That’s it, that’s our strategy. For me, that is not acceptable leadership. And I don’t think I am alone. Again, a MAJORITY of electors voted for change.

Today I am supporting Rev. Dr. Joel Biermann, and I urge those with a vote to do the same.

If the 15% of electors who did not vote in the first round participate in this runoff, and if some of those who supported the other three candidates decide to rally behind Dr. Biermann, change will come.

There is no perfect president. But in Joel Biermann we would have a trusted and tested theologian, a faithful pastor, and a man who has spent decades serving the church by teaching its leaders how to apply Lutheran doctrine and confessions to everyday life in ways that are faithful, practical, Christ-centered, and mission-minded.

He is also the only candidate remaining who is not part of the current administration or a member of the Council of Presidents. He carries no obligation to defend the status quo, no investment in preserving current policies simply because they are current policies. He is free to bring fresh ideas, new energy, and an uncompromised perspective to the challenges facing our church body.

This is not their Synod, it doesn’t belong to the bureaucracy. It belongs to us. It’s ours. Leadership is an act of trust; it is power on loan, a privilege bestowed by the people. And when one leader fails to bear the proper fruit, rightly expected by the people, the privilege must be revoked and handed to others.

We need a president who will equip and inspire both the laity and the ministerium to live boldly in their vocations as baptized followers of Jesus Christ.

I believe that man is Joel Biermann. And I hope you’ll join me in supporting him.